Great Invent ions of Cycling 1869: The saddlebag

It seems incredible now, but penny-farthing riders managed to resist the temptation to make a long, snake-like bag that would cover the entirety of their machine’s frame. If they had, the pastime of penny-farthing packing (and perhaps with it the gravel-farthing) might actually have taken off.

Early saddlebags were adapted from the similar things you get on horses, but moved neatly behind the saddle on the basis that a bike, unlike a horse, doesn’t have an arse to get in the way. They were often made by saddlers, out of fine leather with hand-stitched detailing, and in that respect at least saddlebags have been getting worse for over 150 years.